How Viggo Mortensen Feels About Aragorn Being Recast In The Lord Of The Rings: The Hunt For Gollum

New Line Cinema

"The Hunt for Gollum" is quickly turning into a "The Lord of the Rings"-sized reunion, but fans were disappointed to hear the recent news that Viggo Mortensen had been officially recast as Aragorn and will not be returning for this prequel adventure. Instead, the show must go on with another actor who can better reflect the earlier time period that this new film will be set in (roughly concurrently with the first half of "The Fellowship of the Ring"). As we've since found out, Jamie Dornan will be stepping into those well-worn shoes to bring a younger version of the character to life. But for those curious to learn how Mortensen reacted to this passing of the torch (itself a fairly big deal considering just how flawlessly he portrayed the reluctant king throughout Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy), we now know the answer to that question as well.

Fortunately, there's no signs of behind-the-scenes drama in this corner of Middle-earth. "The Hunt for Gollum" director and star Andy Serkis made an appearance on the newest episode of Josh Horowitz's podcast "Happy/Sad/Confused" (via Entertainment Weekly) and addressed the latest developments regarding the upcoming tentpole. Although remaining tight-lipped about any particulars, Serkis did reveal that Mortensen apparently gave his blessing to Dornan. When asked why Dornan was the right man for the job, Serkis demurred:

"I really, really don't want to go into it right now because I do want to save that for further down the line. [...] I'm gonna save all discussion about casting, other than that we are thrilled that Jamie's doing it. We're absolutely thrilled. And, by the way, so is Viggo."

Upon Horowitz's suggestion that Mortensen had given his "seal of approval" to Dornan's recasting, Serkis replied emphatically, "100 percent."

New Line Cinema

If there's one harsh lesson that Hollywood teaches again and again, it's that nobody's truly irreplaceable. Recasting comes for even the biggest screen legends, especially in this blockbuster era where no franchise can ever fully end, and Viggo Mortensen is only the latest big name to experience this firsthand. Not that this was always going to be the case, mind you. Previous reports indicated that the ball was initially in Mortensen's court as to whether he would return or not. This certainly wasn't unrealistic, considering the age Aragorn is supposed to be at this point in the Middle-earth timeline, but especially in light of the fact that familiar faces like Sir Ian McKellen and Elijah Wood are already set to reprise their original "Lord of the Rings" roles of Gandalf and Frodo, respectively, along with Andy Serkis as Gollum.

While it's unclear exactly how that shook out with Mortensen, whether he declined for any number of reasons or the production simply decided to go in a younger direction, at least some (such as /Film's Jaron Pak) have taken his absence in "The Hunt for Gollum" as a possible cause for concern. As far as replacements go, Jamie Dornan feels like an inspired choice and one that could end up surprising a lot of fans. At the same time, it'll be hard to ignore the optics of mixing so many returning stars (including "The Hobbit" scene-stealer Lee Pace as Thranduil, the father of Orlando Bloom's Legolas) with a new Aragorn that they've never interacted with before. That's just one of the many logistical challenges that this film will have to overcome.

Expect "The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum" to hit theaters in December 2027.